Tearable bottle cap



July 16, 1968 s. w. FAULSTICH TEARABLE BOTTLE CAP Filed DeC. 22, 1965 7.y 3 3 y M f TIE-l) a a.. WMHHZZH INVENTOK 3%4M (y Arrow/EY w UnitedStates Patent O 3,392,860 TEARABLE BOTTLE CAP George W. Faulstich, BlackMountain Spring Water, Inc., 800 Alameda St., San Carlos, Calif. 94070Filed Dec. 22, 1965, Ser. No. 515,608 6 Claims. (Cl. 21S-40) ABSTRACT FTHE DISCLOSURE A plastic bottle cap for S-gallon water bottles, and thelike, has a central disc with a depending skirt which tits snugly aroundthe exterior of the bottle neck and, so long as it remains intact,prevents tampering with the contents. The lower part of the skirt isscored and provided with a tab so that it may be partially torn olf,thereby facilitating easy removal of the cap to dispense the contents.'Ihe cap may also have a hollow plug sealing in the inside of the neck.The score lines are so constructed that when the installer of the bottletears the cap skirt he can readily remove the cap from the neck withouthis hands coming in contact with the bottle lip and thus contaminatingthe contents.

This invention relates to a new and improved plastic water bottle cap ofthe type used on iive gallon water bottles either of the type having ascrew neck or a crowned neck. The cap has a hollow plug sealing in theinside of the neck and also Ia depending skirt which tits snugly aroundthe exterior of the neck of the bottle and, so long as it remainsintact, prevents tampering with the contents. Thus when the skirt isintact, liquid cannot be added to or removed from the bottle. However,the lower part of the skirt is scored and provided with a tab so that itmay be partially torn off, thereby facilitating easy removal of the capto dispense the contents.

A particular feature and advantage of the present in@ vention is thefact that prior to tearing of the skirt the upper part of the neck ofthe bottle, as well as the lip and interior of the neck, are sealed'against contamination from dirt. Another important feature of theinvention is the fact that when the skirt is torn and the cap removed,the likelihood of the hands of the user coming in contact with the upperend of the neck is practically eliminated. This feature is of extremeimportance in sanitation. In prior caps, when the driver who deliversand installs the bottle in a water cooler removes the cap, his hand isin such close proximity to the lip of the neck that contact therewith isnot easily avoided and hence contamination may occur. The presentinvention has for its principal object, therefore, provision of a capwhich promotes sanitation.

A still further feature of the construction of the cap is the fact thatafter the cap has been removed, it may be reinstalled on an empty bottleand used to protect the lip of the bottle against damage duringtransportation of the bottle back to the point of refilling. Inconventional delivery trucks, ve gallon bottles are racked on top ofeach other and this may result in the bottom of the upper bottlechipping or cracking the lip of the neck of the lower bottle and thusreducing the effectiveness of the subsequent seal after the bottle hasbeen used and eventually resulting in discard of the bottle.Accordingly, a still further feature of the present invention is thereduction in damage to the bottles both when the seal is intact and whenit is being used to protect 'a bottle during transportation back to thebottling works.

The torn bottle cap may also be used as a temporary reclosure cap whereall of the contents of the bottle are not dispensed at a single time.There is suiiicient imperforate area on the cap which interts with theneck of Fice the bottle to permit the cap to be reinstalled and keepdust out of the bottle.

Five gallon water bottles are conventionally produced by manufacturersin two types. A rst type is designed for screw cap closure and hasadjacent the upper end two eX- ternal beads surmounted by a smalldiameter upper terminal portion exteriorly screw threaded. Such caps maybe closed with a cork which tits inside the neck but are primarilydesigned for closure with screw thread caps. Use either of screw caps orcorks is unsatisfactory for reasons which are obviated by the presentinvention. Corks are intended to be partially driven into the neck ofthe bottle and for sanitation reasons are customarily covered by a pieceof paper which is held in place by a rubber band. Use of such corks isunsanitary for the reason that they are porous and hence extremelydiiicult to sterilize satisfactorily. Further, the method ofinstallation is labor consuming in that the corks must be driven inplace and the paper covers installed. Another disadvantage is the factthat corks and covers tend to become dislodged during transportation ofthe bottles to the consumer or in some instances the corks are driveninside the bottle by reason of the impact of one bottle against theother. Such corks have a short life and are relatively expensive. Noneof these undesirable features applies to plastic caps in accordance withthis invention.

Screw caps are expensive and they cannot be reused because they cannotbe sterilized readily and still comply with sanitary codes in manylocalities. They tend to leak or unscrew because of vibration duringtransportation. They sometimes stick so that they cannot readily beunscrewed and generally are time-consuming in installation and removal.None of these disadvantages applies to the present invention.

A still further construction of conventional live gallon water bottleseliminates the screw threaded terminal at the upper end of the neck andsuch bottles are referred to herein as crowned Such bottles areconventionally closed by a cork and the disadvantages of cork closureheretofore mentioned apply equally to this type of cap,

A further disadvantage of all prior caps for bottles of this type is thefact that it is relatively easy to replace the high quality pure waterwhich is intended to be vended therein with ordinary tap Water becausethere is no way that removal and replacement of cap or cork can bereadily detected. Such caps encourage dishonesty in that empty bottlescan be lled with tap water instead of the high quality water intended tobe sold. The present invention provides a cap having a skirt which whileintact prevents the contents of the bottle from being substituted. Thepatron is assured by the appearance of the skirt at the time the bottleis delivered that there `has been no tampering with the contents.

A still further advantage of the invention is the fact that the capseals on the neck of the bottle in a plurality of different locations.Thus, an internal corking skirt is provided which seals against theinside of the neck. In addition, the underside of t-he top of the capseals against the top edge or finish of the lip of the neck, In thescrew threaded type of bottles, the cap also seals against the exteriorof the screw threads. Finally, the skirt seals around the -topmostexternal bead as well as against the upper edge of the lower bead.Sealing in a plurality of locations reduces the tendency of the contentsto leak or `for contaminants to enter the bottle.

A principal feature of the inventionris its low cost of manufacture andthe facility with which the cap may be installed at the bottling worksand removed at the premises of the patron.

Other objects of the present invention will become apparent upon readingthe following specification and re- 3 ferring to the accompanyingdrawings in which similar characters of reference representcorresponding parts in each of the several views.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is an exploded side elevational view of a cap in accordance withone form of the invention and the upper portion of a bottle neck withwhich the cap is used.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged vertical midsectional view showing the cap andbottleneck in assembled position.

FIG. 3 is a partially schematic side elevational view showing the skirtin the act of being torn preliminary to removal of the cap.

FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 2 of a modification.

One conventional type of five gallon water bottle used for spring water,distilled water and the like is shown in FIGS. 1-3 and has a neck 11terminating in an upper edge or finish 12 which is annular. Immediatelybelow finish 12 the neck has a small diameter cylindrical upper terminalportion 13 provided with an external screw thread 14 of slightly morethan one turn. Such thread 14 is intended for use with a screw cap butsuch screw cap is not used in accordance with this invention. Belowterminal portion 13 is an external upper bead 16 having a substantiallycircular arcuate upper corner 17 and a downwardly-inwardly taperinglower curvature 18 which terminates in a minimum diameter portion 19which is substantially the same as the diameter of terminus 13. Belowminimum diameter Iportion 19 is a second bead 21 having an uppercurvature 22 which extends upwardlyoutwardly in a parabolic curve 22 andthen curves inwardly-downwardly in a circular arc 23 merging with theupper end of neck 11. Customarily, the bottle is made of glass althoughthe present invention contemplates rigid plastic substitutes for glass.The interior of the bottleneck 11 has a generally cylindrical innerdiameter 26 terminating adjacent the finish 12 in an outwardly flaringbevel 27.

Cap 31 is initially unitary and is a thin-walled plastic such aspolyethylene or polystyrene, it being understood that a variety ofplastic materials is available for such purpose. The quality of theplastic is such that it is sufiiciently resilient so as to slip over theexternal beads and yet to snap back to form tight seals as heretoforedescribed. The material is furthe-r characterized by the fact that itmay be torn with the fingers along a score line as hereinafter explainedto obtain access to the container.

`Cap 31 has a top circular disc 32 having an external diameter aboutequal to the inside diameter of top finish 12 of neck 11. Depending fromthe underside of disc 32 is an internal or corking skirt 41 having adownwardly-inwardly external surface 42 which fits tightly inside theneck portion 26 with `a seal. The bevel or liare 27 of the neckfacilitates proper seating of skirt 41. Around the perimeter of disc 32is an upper skirt portion 34 which is appr-oximately 'cylindrical but inpractical construction tapers downwardly-outwardly and which has aninside diameter equal to the outside diameter of lthread 14 and a lengthsuch that its lower end abuts surface 17 of bead 16. The thread 14 sealsagainst the interior of portion 34. Below portion 34 is an external bead36 which is complementary to bead 16 and terminates in a vertical skirt37 having a lower edge 38 which fits over and seals against the surface22 of bead 21. Depending from bottom edge 38 is a tab 39 havinghorizontal ribs 40 on its `inside surface to facilitate gripping withthe fingers of the user. Slanting upwardly at approximately a 45 angleas best shown in FIG. 1 is an internal score line which commences atbottom edge 38 immediately to the right of tab 39 and slants up to themidpoint of bead 36 where `it merges with a horizontal internal scoreline 47. The arcuate length of score line 47 is less than 180, beingpreferably approximately 150. Score lines 46, 47 are sufficiently deepso that when the user grips the tab 39 and lpulls upwardly and outwardlyas best illustrated in FIG, 3, the skirt tears along said lines topermit removal of cap 31 as hereinafter explained.

In use, cap 31 is installed by pressing downward, corking skirt 41 beingguided by curved surface 27 into the assembled position. The diameter of.skirt 3,7 is greater than that of cylindrical portion 13 and hence fitseasily over that portion. By reason of .the'fact that surfaces 17 and 22are rounded, when downward pressure is applied on cap 31, the capstretches so that it slips over beads 17 and 21 and then contracts toits initial condition with tight sealing engagement against bead 16 andthe upper surface 22 of bead 21 as well as with thread 14, lip 12 andthe interior of neck 26. In such position the contents of the bottle arenot subject to tampering since the cap cannot be removed without tearingthe skirt. Water cannot leak out of the bottle nor can dirt or othercontaminants enter. Of equal importance is the fact that the exterior ofthe bottle around the neck is also protected from contaminants.

When the bottle reaches its destination, it is customarily unloaded froma truck by the driver and installed in a water cooler, although such enduse is not essential to practice of the present invention. The usergrasps tab 39 and pulls upwardly and outwardly with a twisting motion asbest illustrated in FIG. 3, tearing along lines 46 and 47. Continuedpulling of tab 39 upwardly and outwardly unseats cap 31 from the neck ofthe bottle, the plastic stretching suliiciently after the skirt has beenperforated as indicated to permit removal of the cap. The hands of theuser are far removed from the upper end of the neck and hence the dangerof contamination of the surface or of the contents by contact of thehands is eliminated.

When desired, the cap in the condition shown in FIG. 3 may be used forreclosure purposes. The cap fits on the bottleneck sufficiently tightlyto prevent dirt fromv contaminating the water, and in fact the cap ispartially water-tight under normal storage conditions. A principalpurpose of the perforated cap, however, is the fact that it may bereapplied to an empty bottle and when thus used protects the bottle fromchipping or cracking during transportation back to the bottling works.

The shape of the bottleneck 11 shown in FIGS. 1-3 is only one of twocommon types of bottlenecks commercially available. FIG. 4 illustrates acommon alternate construction wherein the terminus 13 is eliminated. Theneck 11a illustrated is in other respects similar and similar charactersof reference are used followed by the subscript a. Cap 31a is similar tothat of the preceding modification in construction and use except forthe fact that the portion 34 is eliminated. The same reference numeralsare used in the cap followed by the subscript a.

Although the foregoing invention has been described in some detail, byway of illustration and example for purposes of clarity andunderstanding, it is understood that certain changes and modificationsmay be practiced within the spirit of the invention and scope of theappended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In combination, a container having; a container neck having anannular finish at the end of said neck, an upper external first beadhaving a substantially circular arcuate upper corner and a downwardtapering lower curvature ending in a minimum diameter portion and asecond bead below said minimum diameter portion; and a cap of a exibleplastic material, said cap deformable to accommodate minor variations inbottle dimensions and also to permit said cap to stretch over said firstbead, said cap preformed and having substantially uniform wall thicknessthroughout, said cap comprising a fiat top disc having a diameter aboutequal to that of said finish, an external third bead below said disccomplementary to and tightly engaging said first bead down to the upperend of said lower curvature, and a vertical skirt below said externalthird bead having a diameter less than said iirst and second beads ofsaid neck, said external third bead being weakened in a iirst score lineapproximately midway of said external third bead and also in a spiralconfiguration second score line joining said iirst line and extendingdown to the bottom edge of said skirt, said skirt being tearable alongsaid second and first lines, said cap in intact condition on said necksealing said neck against either input or output of 1iquid,.said capwhen torn along said second and iirst lines permitting removal of saidcap from said neck.

2. The combination of claim 1 which further comprises a pull tabdepending from the lower edge of said skirt to one side of the lower endof said second line.

3. A combination according to claim 2 in which said tab is formed withribs facilitating gripping with the ngers.

4. A combination according to claim 1 in which the arcuate length ofsaid Iirst score line is less than 180.

5. A combination according to claim 1 which further comprises a corkingskirt depending from said top disc and dimensioned to seal inside saidneck.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,109,547 11/1963 Wood 21S-46 X3,142,403 7/1964 Fox 215-46 X 3,266,676 8/ 1966 McKernan 220-54 XFOREIGN PATENTS 816,787 7/ 1959 Great Britain. 614,483 12/ 1960 Italy.

JOSEPH R. LECLAIR, Primary Examiner.

DONALD F. NORTON, Assistant Examiner.

